Twelve ambitious AI startups have been selected to compete in the AI Pitch Competition. The finals are on November 7, 2024, and Innovation Origins will portray each contestant in the run-up to that event. The AI Pitch Competition is a Brabant-based organization that aims to spotlight the most innovative AI solutions, offering startups the opportunity to present their ideas, connect with industry leaders, and accelerate their growth. Today, we show what Meterd has in store for the world. Alan Fiszerowicz, co-founder, answers our questions.
Meterd aims to support and accelerate the transition into sustainable energy and utility solutions by combining smart IoT and data science. Meterd offers an IoT utility usage optimization solution for the public sector and businesses. Its all-in-one platform allows for monitoring and managing key utility cost drivers and sustainable performance indicators with the help of an in-app smart digital consultant.
1. What specific AI technology or algorithm is at the core of your solution, and how does it differentiate from existing approaches in the industry?
“At Meterd, the foundation of our AI-driven solution is the machine learning (ML) anomaly detection model. This model continuously monitors real-time utility data to detect inefficiencies, giving our clients actionable insights for optimizing energy, water, and air quality management. Meterd is especially impactful for municipalities struggling to meet EPBD zero-emission regulations by 2028. Our approach differentiates itself from existing systems by using predictive analytics for proactive utility management and dynamic regulatory compliance (e.g., ESRS reporting for businesses), ensuring both environmental sustainability and operational efficiency.”
2. How scalable is your AI solution, and what are the primary challenges you anticipate in bringing it to a global or large-scale market?
“Meterd’s AI solution is highly scalable due to its cloud-based infrastructure and compatibility with existing IoT devices. It can seamlessly expand from small businesses to multi-building complexes across regions. However, we foresee challenges in navigating the various local regulatory frameworks, which could require further customization of our platform. Nevertheless, our modular system allows for flexibility, making it easy to adapt to different energy efficiency standards. By continuously integrating customer feedback and expanding our partnerships with IoT industry experts, Meterd is well-positioned for large-scale deployment across Europe.”
3. How does your startup address potential ethical concerns related to bias, fairness, or transparency in AI decision-making? Can you provide an example of how you mitigate such risks?
“To address ethical concerns like bias and transparency, Meterd’s AI models are built using diverse datasets from various climates and building types, reducing bias in our decision-making processes. Transparency is key to our platform, where every AI-driven recommendation is clearly explained to facility managers and business stakeholders, ensuring full accountability. Additionally, our AI-driven decisions are always subject to human oversight, enabling users to validate and adjust our system’s insights if needed. This ensures that Meterd’s energy efficiency suggestions are not only accurate but also fair and actionable, promoting trust in AI-driven decision-making.”
4. In what ways do you believe your AI solution can positively impact society? Are there any unintended societal risks or challenges you foresee, and do you prepare to handle them?
“Meterd’s societal impact extends beyond sustainability efforts like reducing greenhouse gas emissions and optimizing energy usage. By helping municipalities and cities save on utility costs, Meterd allows these public sector entities to reallocate funds to other vital areas, such as education or community welfare. This has a direct positive impact on local communities, improving citizens’ well-being. Moreover, our solution helps companies meet the ESRS requirements for environmental reporting, thus contributing to better corporate responsibility across Europe. The result is a ripple effect where cost savings and sustainability efforts benefit society as a whole.”
5. Entrepreneurial journey: What has been the biggest hurdle in launching your AI startup, and how did you overcome it? How has the current AI landscape shaped your business model and growth strategy?
“One of the greatest challenges we faced during Meterd’s development was integrating our solution into older building infrastructures, which were not initially equipped for IoT and smart metering technologies. Many municipalities also struggled to manage the complex data from diverse energy systems, hindering their efforts to meet EPBD compliance. We overcame this by partnering with industry leaders in IoT technology, allowing us to retrofit buildings with the necessary smart devices. The demand for real-time data and sustainability tools helped us focus on providing a holistic solution that addresses both operational efficiency and regulatory compliance.”
6. Regulation and compliance: How do you prepare for the increasing regulatory frameworks around AI, such as GDPR, AI Act, or other data privacy laws? How does this impact your innovation and development process?
“Meterd is designed to address increasing regulatory frameworks such as GDPR, EU AI Act, and CSRD by building compliance features directly into our platform. We closely monitor and adapt to regulatory changes, ensuring our solution meets the evolving demands around data privacy and AI-driven decision-making. Our platform plays a critical role in helping municipalities adhere to EPBD regulations and ensuring businesses can accurately report their Scope 1 and Scope 2 emissions as required by the ESRS. This alignment with regulatory standards strengthens our competitive advantage while providing our clients with peace of mind.”
7. How do you see your technology evolving over the next 5 to 10 years, and what role do you expect your company to play in shaping the future of AI?
“Our long-term vision for Meterd is to be a leader in AI-powered utility management and sustainability reporting across Europe. Over the next 5 to 10 years, we aim to evolve our AI into a fully autonomous energy consultant, capable of offering real-time predictive maintenance and optimization for smart cities and large industrial operations. As buildings modernize and municipalities move toward zero-emission targets, Meterd’s platform will continue to lead in enabling data-driven decisions. We see ourselves playing a crucial role in shaping the future of smart city infrastructure and AI-based energy solutions.”
8. Why are you winning The AI Pitch Competition?
“Meterd’s strong validation through multiple pilot projects and our industry partnerships with experts in IoT and sustainability solutions (with over 15 years of technical experience) makes us well-positioned to win this competition. Our solution has demonstrated tangible results, helping European municipalities meet EPBD regulations and assisting companies in complying with ESRS reporting requirements. We’re not just another monitoring tool—we provide a dynamic, scalable solution that empowers businesses and cities to optimize their resources, save costs, and reduce environmental impact. Our unique blend of AI-driven insights, predictive analytics, and regulatory compliance tools gives us a clear edge in this competition.”
Collaboration
Related Posts
